U.S. Stocks Drop After Hope Fades for Expanded Aid: Markets Wrap
Bloomberg 12/29/2020 Vildana Hajric
(Bloomberg) U.S. stocks pulled back from record highs, with small-cap shares posting their biggest drop in a month, as prospects faded for bigger government aid checks to individuals. The dollar weakened.
The Russell 2000 Index tumbled almost 2%, while the S&P 500 finished only slightly lower. A gauge of global equities was set to close at a record after the U.S. House backed President Donald Trump’s proposal to boost aid checks for individuals, but pulled back from its high of the day as Senate Republicans blocked an attempt by Democrats to increase the direct payments to $2,000 from $600.
Stocks, Equity Futures Climb; Dollar Edges Lower: Markets Wrap
SYNDICATED 2 months ago (Bloomberg) U.S. and European equity futures pushed higher with most Asian stocks Monday after President Donald Trump signed a coronavirus stimulus package. The dollar ticked lower with Treasuries.S&P 500 contracts climbed after Trump backed down from last-minute demands and approved the combined $2.3 trillion Covid-19 relief and government funding package. Shares advanced in Tokyo and Seoul, and fluctuated in Hong Kong and Shanghai. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index dipped and Treasury yields climbed. Oil slipped and gold rose.Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. slid in Hong Kong despite boosting its share buyback program to $10 billion, amid ongoing concern over China’s inquiry into alleged monopolistic practices. Chinese regulators over the weekend ordered affiliate Ant Group Co. to return to its roots as a provider of payments services, a development that threatens to clip its growth.Elsewhere, th